Calender



V. SPENCER May 18, 1954 'CALE'NDER Filed .June ,15, 195o Y Patented May 18, 1954 CALENDER Virgil Spencer, East Petersburg, Pa., assignor to Armstrong Cork Company, Lancaster, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application June 13, 1950, Serial No. 167,783

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to an improvement in calenders, mills, or the like and more particularly to an adjusting screw mechanism to permit proper alignment of the roll bearings while one of the rolls is being moved during roll adjustment as in control of the gauge of sheet material being processed on the mill.

In the operation of calenders or mills of the type currently used in the manufacture of sheet material such as linoleum andthe like, it has been common practice to provide one roll with bearings mounted in Xed chocks so that its position will always be the same and to provide the other roll with bearings mounted in movable chooks so that the position of the movable roll can be adjusted with respect to the xed roll to alter the distance between the two rolls in accordance with the requirements for the particular sheet material being processed.

The movable chocks used prior to this invention were adjusted by means of an adjusting screw mechanism having a convex end which was machined to ilt into a suitably machined concave socket on the side of the chock, forming a partial ball and socket joint between the adjusting screw and the chock. The reason for the ball and socket joint is to permit the chock to pivot slightly with respect to the adjusting screw so that the bearing carried by the chock will automatically align itself with the shaft of the mill or calender roll. If this limited pivotal movement is not permitted, any slight adjustment of the roll will tend to twist the bearings, causing the sha-it to bind therein.

Because of the nature of the heavy equipment used in the processing of raw materials used in the manufacture of sheet material such as linoleum and the like, it is necessary that the bearing chocks for the movable roll be free not only for pivotal movement but must also be free to move in a direction parallel to the axis of the calender roll. This lateral movement is limited to approximately 1/8; but nevertheless, it is sufficient to permit the chock to move to such an extent that the center line of the socket in the chock does not always coincide with the center line of the ball portion of the adjusting screw. When this oli-center condition exists, the ball and socket joint of the type used heretofore does not function properly because the pressure on one side of the ball and socket joint is greater than on the other side, causing the same to bind` This binding prevents the chock from pivoting when an adjustment is made with the result that the bearings are cocked, causing undue wear. It

should be borne in mind that in equipment of the type here under consideration the pressure on the ball and socket joint may be in the neighborhood of 200 tons. j

In order to overcome the disadvantages experienced in the prior art structures, the present structure has been developed, This new device provides two ball and socket joints between the adjusting screw and the chock, each joint being provided with a hemispherical ball and a. hemispherical socket, which arrangement provides greater flexibility in the device, making it pos-I sible for the chock to move pivotally and laterally with respect to the screw and yet maintain complete contact between the balls and sockets to carry the high loads. l An object of this invention is to provide a freely working joint between a bearing chock and an adjusting mechanism. i

In order that this invention may be more readily understood, the same will be described in connection with the attached drawingv in which:` Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of the chock adjusting mechanism showing the joint; i Figure 2 is an elevational view of a machine showing the position of the adjusting mechanism with respect to the position of the rolls; Figure 3 is a cross-sectional View looking down on the top of the adjusting mechanism with the chock and the adjusting screw in alignment; and Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view looking down on the top of the adjusting mechanism with th v chock moved out of alignment with the adjusting screw. A Referring to Figure 2 there is showny a conventional two-roll calender mounted on a base 2 by means of a calender frame 3. Mounted on theb calender frame 3 is a stationary chock 4 having a bearing 5 in which a calender roll journal 6 rotates. Adjacent to the stationary chock 4 is a horizontally slidable chock 'l mounted for horizontal movement within ways 8 and 9. The positioning of the chock 1 in the ways 8 and 9 is such that the chock is free to move a limited amount (approximately 1/8") in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of the roll i0. This movable chock carries a bearing I! xed therein in which the roll journal l2 of the movable roll I0 rotates. The calender rolls are driven by motor i3 through a suitable gear reduction device M and the large drive gear l5. This drive gear i5 drives both calender rolls through a suitable gearing mechanism not shown.

In order to adjust the clearance between the rolls l0 and i6, the roll lll is mounted in the movable bearing chock Referring to Figure l there is shown an adjusting screw i1 threaded in a sleeve I8 which is in turn secured in a portion of theY calender frame 3. rIhis threaded sleeve I8 is removable and is held in place by means of studs I9. The screw ll' is rotated by means of a worm 2) which is in engagement with worm gear 2 I keyed to the end of the screw shaft I1. The opposite end of the screw shaft I'l is provided with a socket 22 adapted to receive the end of a rod 23 having rounded ends. The chock 1 is provided with a bearing plate 24 which is secured to the side thereof by means of studs 25: This bearing plate '25 has a socket 26 which is designed to receive the other end of the rod 23.

Attached to the bearing plate 213 and encircling the rod 23 isV a flanged ring 2li held in place on bearing plate 2li by means of studs 26. The flange on the anged ring 27 extends over a ange 29 on the end of the screw shaft il. This prevents the chock. 'l from moving away from the adjusting screw Il and also provides means whereby the movable roll may be moved away from the xed roll while making adjustment. However, the iit between the ange oi the ring El and the flange 29 is suiliciently loose to enable the two members to twist slightly with respect to one another.

The rod 23 provides two ball and socket joints between the adjusting screw and the chock. rlhe radius on the ends of the rod 23 provides bearing surfaces for carrying the pressure exertedY thereon. The bearing surfaces of the end of the screw Il' and the end of the rod 23 are complementary, and the bearing surface on the plate 215i is cornplementary with the other ball end of the rod 23. This arrangement permits the bearing chock l to be free to align its bearing il with the roll journal l2 while the adjustment is being made even Vthough the center line of the socket in the chock l may not be the same as the center line of the adjusting screw il?, and the longitudinal axis of the roll may not be perpendicular tothe center line of the screw. This oi-center condition is illustrated in Figure 4;. .Figure 3 is a view looking down on the roll adjusting mechanism when the chock and adjusting screw are in align ment, and Figure 4 is a similar view showing the chock and adjusting screw out of alignment. It will be obvious from a study of Figure Ll that the rod 23 is efiective for transmitting force from the adjusting screw to the chock even though they 'are cutof alignment.

The geometrical shape or" the rod `23 shown herein is preferable in carrying out the invention. A. sphere permits the chock to pivot, but it does not permit the chock to move in a direction par- With a rod member 23 as shown, there are provided two ball and socket joints whereby the chock is free to move in any direction while at the same time it is connected to the adjusting screw il in such manner that the adjusting screw is eiective for` moving the movable roll toward and away from the iixed roll to control the gauge of the sheet material being processed thereon.

This invention has been found highly advantageous in maintaining proper adjustment of rolls on heavy manufacturing equipment such as that 'sed in the processing oi sheet material.

It ywill be understood that the terms calender" and. mill refer to any arrangement of rolls in which one roll adjustable with respect to the others.

I claim:

En a mechanism for adjusting the clearance between the rolls of a calender, the elements comprising a calender frame, a pair of calender rolls mounted in said frame, one of said rolls being adjustable with respect to the other roll, said adjustable roll being journalled in checks slidably mounted in said calender frame, each of said checks being provided with a hemsphelcal socket, the central axis ofrwhich is normal to the longitudinal axis of the journal, a hol-ddown adjusting screw threadably mounted in said calender frame, the central axis of the adjusting screw being substantially normal tov the longitudinal lcentral of the calender roll journal, the end of the adjusting screw disposed in the vicinity of the chock being provided with a hemispherical socket, and a rod having hemispherical ends disposed between the adjusting screw and the chock with the hemispheri'cal. endsof the rod iitting in the respective sockets in the chock and the adjusting screw.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 381,746 Wright Apr, 24, 1888 901,251 Melli/Tied Oct. 13, 1908 1,5%,679 Midgley July 8, 1924 1,741,715 Hugues Dec. 31, 1929 1,762,292 George June l0, 1930 1,871,137 Underdahl Aug. 9, 1932 2,010,211 t/"ood Aug, 6, 1935 2,069,746 Andrews Feb. 9, 1937 2,678,777 Schade Apr. 27,1937

FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 243,344: Great Britain Apr. 29, 1926 

